Dispensing device



HIJ

Feb. 5, 1924.

arr/E y Patented Feb. 5, 1924.

WILLIAM G. WOODS AND NELSON T. SHAW', OF LOS ANGELES, LFORNA.

DISPENSING DEVICE.

Application led July 31,

To all cc/zomyz't may concern.' Y

Be it known that we, WILLIAM G. Woons and NELSON T. SHAW, both citizens of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Dis-v pensing Device, of which the following is a specification.

rIhis invention rela-tes to a dispensing device capable of being used for dispensing toothpicks and other like articles, and an object of this invention is to provide a simple device of this character that is effective in operation and not liable to get out of order.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a dispensing device embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmental vertical section of the device shown in Fig. 1. The parts are shown in position for feeding an article to the slot in the intermediate member, and broken lines indicate the cover in raised position.

Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation on the line indicated by 3-3, Fig. 2, the chute Hoor being omitted.

Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation similar to Fig. 2, with the parts in position for discharging the articles into the chute.

There are provided upper, intermediate and lower members f5, 6, 7 respectively. The upper member is provided with a slot 8, the intermediate member with a slot 9 and the lower member with a slot 10. The slots 8, 10 are offset so as not to register with one another and the members 5, 7 are connected to one another.

The members 5, 7 are connected at each end to a disk 11 and the disks 11 are rotatably mounted on studs 12 projecting from the side walls of a chute 13. The floor 14: of the chute preferably is concave and a portion thereof is at a lower level than the front edge of the Hoor so that articles discharged into it will not slide from the chute.

The intermediate member 6 is stationarily mounted in this instance, being connected at its opposite ends to disks 15 spaced from the disks 11 and secured to the inner ends of the studs 12. Thus the disks 11 rotate between the disks 15 and the side walls of the chute. The member 7 is provided with a forwardly projecting arm 16 for engagement by the operators finger so as to effect rotation of the members 5, 7 from the posi- 1922. Serial N0. 578,690.

tion shown in Fig. 2 to the position shown in Fig. 4. In the position shown in F ig. 2 the slots 8, 9 registery so as to permit an article within the member 5v passing through the slot 8 into theslot 9. In this particular instance the articles to be dispensed are indicated as toothpicks 17.

The members 5, 7 are yieldingly held in the position shown in F ig. 2 by a coil spring 18 which is secured at one end, as indicated at 19, to the outer face of the member 7 and at its other end, as indicated at 20, to one side of the chute 13. The spring 18 tends to rotate the members 5, 7 to bring a stop 21 on the outer face of the member 7 against the rear edge of the floor 1.4L of the chute so as to limit rotation of the members 5, 7 in one direction. Limitation of rotation in the other direction is effected by reason of the stop 21 engaging the rear wall 23 of the chute. When the arm 16 is depressed to brino the stop 2l against the rear wall 23, the s ot 9 registers with the slot 10 so as to permit the article in said slot 9 to discharge through the slot 10 onto the bottom of the chute.

The lower member 7 constitutes the outer face of a semi-cylindrical receptacle and the member 5 the inner face thereof, said receptacle having the double wall 5, 7 to accommodate the member 6.

Hinged at 24 to the upper edge ofthe rear wall 23 is a cover 25 provided with a transparent window 26. The cover 25 is externally .convex and is provided with end flanges 27 which overlap the side walls of the chute when the cover is closed. The cover forms a closure for that portion of the chute in which the members 5, 6 and 7 are mounted so that dust is excluded from said portion of the chute. The forward edge of the cover 25 is provided with 'a notch 28 to accommodate the arm 16 when said arm is in its upper or retracted position.

Assuming that it is desired to dispense toothpicks by use of the device, said toothpicks will be placed inside of the member 5, thus allowing one of the toothpicks to drop into the slot 9 and rest upon the inner face of the member 7. To use the device, the arm 16 will be depressed thus causing rotation of the members 5, 7 in the` direction of the arrow a in Fig. 2. This rotation causes the front margin 29 of the slot 8 to pass rearwardly across the slot 9, thus shutting o said slot from the interior of the member 5. As the front edge :29 moves across said slot, the rear margin 30 or' the slot 10 moves rearwardly across the slot 9, Whereupon the toothpick in the slot 9 discharges from the member 7 through the slot 10 onto the bottom 14 of the chute. The toothpiek rolls into the lower portion 22 of the chute floor, from which it is abstracted by the operator. As soon as the operator has oompleted the depression of the arm 16 to efect discharge of the toothpick, he Will release said arm and the spring 18 Will then tunetion to rotate the members 5, 7 in the direction of the arrow b in Fig. 4 to normalize said members, whereupon another of the toothpiels will drop into the slot 9 ready for subsequent discharge upon again depressing the arm 16.

lVe Claim: ln a dispensing device, the combination ot a Chute having side and rear Walls and a oor, a receptacle rotatably mounted on the side Walls and provided with spaced walls having slots in offset relation, a slotted member connected With the side Walls of the chute and extending between the hello7 Walls, means to yieldingly hold the receptaele in position with one of its slots registering with the slot in the stationary member., and means to rotate the receptacle to position with its other slot registering with the slot in the stationar),v member.

Signed at Los Angeles, California, this 25th da7 of July, 1922.

VLLIAM G. l/ODS. NELSON T. SHAVJ. 

